The holidays are stressful for just about everyone, so a de-stressing gift set is a guaranteed home run in the gift-giving department. This one comes with Stress Fix Body Lotion, Soaking Salts, and a stress-relieving essential oil. And the box is made by indigenous people in Nepal -- the paper saves trees and supports more than 1,000 families. What's not to love?
Aveda De-Stress Détente, $66, aveda.com
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Little lights
Every beauty editor -- and chic woman -- on earth is obsessed with Diptyque candles, and for good reason: The scents are beautiful and the packaging is gorgeous. Whether you're shopping for a known Diptyque fan or just someone who appreciates the finer things, you can't go wrong with this trio (Feu d Bois, Oliban, and Opopanax). The combo smells like a ski lodge in Aspen and comes in a classy black and gold box.
Diptyque Mini Trio Candle Set, $84, spacenk.com
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Beautiful blotting paper (seriously)
OK, we know what you're thinking: Who's actually going to give someone blotting paper as a gift? But look at these blotting papers! What woman (of the oily-skin variety) wouldn't want them? The floral Japanese-ish packaging is so great that we want to pull them out and blot in public.
Boscia Fashionably Matte, $22, sephora.com
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Pastel confections
This is basically the everything-you-need eye makeup kit: 14 wearable shadows, an eyeshadow primer, and Lashgasm mascara. And the robin's egg blue velvet box looks super luxurious.
Too Faced Shadow Bon-Bons, $42, toofaced.com
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Sweet treats
Philosophy is another brand that blows us away every holiday season. This gift set caught our eye because of the Eiffel Tower on the box and Paris-inspired body washes: macaroon, crème brulée, and currant tart. Delicious, oui?
Philosophy Sweet Rendezvous Set, $25, sephora.com
Sure, the holidays are the most wonderful time of the year, but there's something about all the do-it-yourself, Martha-Stewart-perfectionist pressure that can really bring a girl down.
It's virtually impossible for one human being to bake 17 different kinds of cookies, trim the tree with popcorn and cranberry garlands, and wrap every present with color-coordinated paper and bows. No matter how many brilliant ideas you've pinned on Pinterest, you're going to have to cut yourself some slack eventually. Enter: the beauty gift set.
Beauty gift sets are the ideal presents. Every woman loves beauty products, they're almost always a steal (we're talking hundreds of dollars worth of product for a fraction of the price), and they're limited edition (read: special). And most importantly, many of them come packaged in boxes that are so beautiful, you don't even need to wrap them.
So, forget the wrapping paper, Scotch tape, and spools of ribbon. When you give someone one of these gift sets, they'll be so thrilled they won't even notice the pretty snowflake paper and glittery bow are missing.
